United American Federation Navy
The United American Federation Navy (UAFN) is the naval warfare branch of the United American Federation armed forces. The UAFN is considered to be far superior than the navy of the UAF's primary enemy, the Fourth German Reich. The primary mission of the UAFN is to protect the UAF's vast borders from the GGR and other conventional military threats. In addition, the UAFN participates in a number of auxiliary roles such as peacekeeping on the UAF Frontier, anti-piracy missions, and medical support missions. History The UAF Navy traces its history to both the United States and Royal Navies. As such it has an impressive naval tradition with many practices dating back over 600 years. Considered the senior service with in the UAF military it receives most of the funding and prestige. While it has not fought against a peer level navy since the expulsion from Mars many of its service members have been involved in anti-piracy, anti-terrorism, and peace keeping actions since the Navy's founding. Organization The UAF Navy falls under the jurisdiction of the Department of the Navy, under the civilian leadership of the Secretary of the Navy. The senior most naval officer is the Chief of Spaceborn Forces (CSF), a four star admiral who is immediately under and reports directly too the Secretary of the Navy. This position is administrative in nature and serves mostly to ensure that up to date naval expertise is provided to the civilian government. The CSF is responsible for the organization, recruiting, training, and equipping of the Navy so that it is ready for operational command under the Line Admirals. Operational Forces There are three major components in the operating forces for the UAF Navy: United American Federation Navy Central Command, United American Federation Navy Spinward Command, and Naval Expeditionary Combat Command. Central Command controls a number of unique capabilities including, the Office of Naval Intelligence and Operational Test and Evaluation Force. The Expeditionary Combat Command controls the Military Spacelift Command. Each command is led a by a four star admiral. The UAF Navy has nice number fleets -- First through Eighth are led by a vice admiral while the Tenth is led by a rear admiral. First, Second, Third, and Fourth Fleets are under Central Command; Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh are under Spinward Command; and Eight, Ninth, and Tenth are under Expeditionary Command. Tenth Fleet is acts as an administrative unit in times of peace and is only activated a combat formation to control spacelift forces in times of war. Shore Establishment Habitats, Space Stations, and Ground Bases are collectively referred to as "Shore Establishments" by the UAF Navy. Among the shore establishments are the three naval academies: United American Federation Naval Academy Trappist (the Dark Rock), United American Federation Naval Academy Sirius, and United American Federation Naval Academy Gemini. Sirius and Gemini provide enlisted training and only the first year of officer school while Trappist provides the second through fourth years of the academy, officer candidate school, and the direct commissioning course. Trappist also serves as the academy for officers wishing to join the naval service of the Federation Expeditionary and Survey Administration. Relations with Other Service Branches United American Federation Shock Corps While under command of the Department of the Army the role of the Shock Corps as a first strike military operation has led to a close relation between the Corps and the Navy. The Shock Crops are often stationed on naval capital ships in company or greater strength to allow these ship to conduct planetary assaults. The Third and 49th Shock Trooper Divisions are under the command of the Eight and Ninth Fleets respectively giving these fleets the ability to assault developed worlds and secure a landing zone for follow-up Army forces. Federation Expeditionary Legion Navy The Federation Expeditionary Legion as the military branch of the Federation Expeditionary and Survey Administration maintains a small fleet. This Legion Navy provides escort to the numerous scientific, humanitarian, and supply vessels to far flung colonies, independent systems, and unexplored regions. Spinward Command works closely with the Legion Navy in colonies. Traditional the Navy sees the Legion as either cowboys or pirates while the Legion sees the Navy as stuff aristocrats. The annual regatta at the Trappist Academy between the Legionary and Navy teams is a highlight of both the Academy's and the Navy's calendar. Equipment * Enduring Democracy Class Fleet Carrier * Kilimanjaro Class Battlecruiser * Magellan Class Frigate * Voyager Class Frigate Doctrine The doctrine of the UAF Navy is based around the late 20th Century military strategist Anthony Barbe's treatise ''On Intergalactic Warfare. ''Each Command represents one of Barbe's three main organization theories: the Albatross, the Bear, and the Cobra represented as the Spinward Command, Central Command, and Expeditionary Combat Command respectfully. Further, as per Barbe the main ship of the UAF Navy is not the destroyer but the frigate and to a lesser extent the cruiser. These ships are more in line with their Age of Sail ancestors then their Nuclear Age ancestors. Spinward Command as the Albatross acts a light, constantly patrolling force not designed for direct combat against peer level powers but instead support missions to less developed areas of space. As such the command contains only three of the massive the fleet carriers but nearly all of the smaller light carriers. A significant number the Navy's battlecrusiers are also under the Spinward Command. This command is not expected to decisively engage the main Greater German Reich Fleet but instead patrol and maintain a federal presence in the outer colonies. Central Command, as the Bear, acts as the main component of the UAF Navy's strength. Under its command are eight carrier battle groups and four battleship squadrons. In peace time approximately a third of the fleet is deactivated or under going maintenance, a third are in training, and third are active. This organizational system is called hibernation by Barbe giving the doctrine its ursine name. In war time Central Command would support the offensive operations of the Expeditionary Combat Command while Spinward Command would move to defend the major UAF worlds. In war time Central Command has access to the four Vengeance Class Super Carriers and their battle groups in addition to its usual assortment of fleet carrier battle groups and battleship squadrons. Expeditionary Combat Command as the Cobra acts as a fast combined arms forced designed to, as former Chief of Spaceborn Forces Philip R. Ruge stated, "kick the door" into enemy star systems. The command is focused around four large dreadnought squadrons two assault carrier task forces. The dreadnoughts main goal is to decisively engage the enemy spaceborn forces while the assault carrier groups execute raids and/or landings on major enemy orbital structures and planets. As such the Third and 49th Shock Trooper Divisions are under the command of the Eight and Ninth Fleets respectively. During war time the Tenth Fleet activates and acts to both escort the large transports necessary for offensive ground operations in enemy systems and commands the fast fleet replenishment ships for offensive spaceborn forces. Organization of Operational Forces The Fleet Carrier Battle Group (CBG) is the pride and joy of the UAF Navy. It consists of: * One Fleet Carrier, * Two heavy cruisers, * Four light cruisers or frigates, and * Sixteen destroyers. Battleship Squadrons (BBS) serve as both raiding forces and the hammer to the CGB airwing's anvil. It consists of: * Two Battleships * Six light cruiser or frigates, and * Twenty-four destroyers. All Fleets under Central Command are made up of two carrier battle groups and one battleship squadron. Spinward Command CBGs are structured similarly to Central Command CBGs. Expeditionary Combat Command dreadnought and assault carrier squadrons are structured along the same lines as CBGs and BBSs. Spinward Command also contains six light carrier patrol groups. The force composition of these patrol groups varies but in general it is three light carriers supported by three battle cruisers and a large number of frigates. These forces are usually dispersed over a large area and rarely do the task forces ever combine in to singular operation entity. Ship Classifications of the UAF Navy Unlike Atomic era navies the main ship of UAF Navy is not the destroyer but the frigate. This often comes as a surprise to many as on paper the most numerous ship in the UAF Navy is the destroyer. However, only one-third of the destroyers in the UAF Navy are ever active during peace time while frigates remain continuously active. This is far more evident in the design of the ships. Destroyers are heavily offensive ships, sacrificing range, crew comfort, and survivability for maximum offensive power. Destroyers for their mass carry more point defense systems then any other ship type in the UAF Navy. Frigates are built on large hulls usually light cruiser in origin and are designed to maximize range, crew comfort, and long-term survivability. Designed to operate independently in the vast areas that make up United American Federation frigates contain numerous departments that have historically only been found on large capital ships. This includes advance medical and research facilities, small airwings, and advanced sensor suites. They lack considerable offensive firepower compared to similar sized ships of the Greater German Navy and the rarer UAF Navy cruiser. As frigates are less determined by the size of the ship and more the use of such ship the size of various frigate classes varies wildly. The Magellan and Aldrin class frigates exemplify this as they are respectively based off the Endurance light cruiser and the Lexington class battlecruiser. As many frigates and cruisers are based off the same hull the UAF Navy has put substantial effort into the modularity of the classes. This leads to some ships changing between cruisers and frigates throughout their service life. This process is referred to as falling or falling out of line. The "line" is a reference to the ancient battle lines used by ships in the Age of Sail. Notable Ships * UFS Obama * UFS John Robertson * UFS Salem * UFS Canary Notable Personnel As the President of the UAF, Abigail Jacklyn Dawn serves as the commander-in-chief of the UAF armed forces, and is therefore the head of the United American Federation Navy.